Educational Research (ISSN: 2141-5161) Vol. 1(7) pp. 219-225 August 2010
Available online http://www.interesjournals.org/ER
Copyright ©2010 International Research Journals
Full Length Research Paper
Application of computer based resources in Geography
education in secondary schools
Joseph Osodo1, Francis Chisikwa Indoshi1, Omolo Ongati2
1
Department of Educational Communication, Technology and Curriculum Studies, Maseno University, Private Bag,
Maseno, Kenya.
2
Department of Mathematics, Maseno University, Private Bag, Maseno, Kenya.
Accepted 09 August, 2010
Several schools in the developing countries face escalating demands on access to finite computer
based resources in teaching and learning. Perennial lack of access to relevant educational computer
hardware and software often impede geographic instruction in many institutions. In Kenya, there is
increased advocacy and adoption of computer resources in Geography education. Yet the context for
this implementation has not been examined as to its potency thereby leaving the innovation to chance.
The purpose of the study was to establish the availability, extent and potential utilization of computer
based resources in Geography education in secondary schools. The design of the study was
descriptive surveys that were conducted in Kisumu District of Nyanza Province, Kenya. The study
targeted 240 secondary school teachers and 3500 form three high school students. Simple random
sampling technique was used to select a sample of 80 teachers and 1165 form three Geography
students. Questionnaire surveys were used to collect data. To ascertain reliability, the test-retest
reliability procedure was performed. Analysis of data was done by use of descriptive statistics. The
study found that no school in Kisumu District had computers dedicated for teaching and learning
Geography and computer use for unrelated duties was minimal, uncoordinated and lacking in
innovation. The study recommended that it is of necessity to motivate, facilitate and equip secondary
school Geography students and teachers with requisite knowledge and expertise on innovative
computer uses.
Keywords: Computer based-resources, geographic instruction, availability, utilization.
INTRODUCTION
The ability of existing educational approaches to impart
knowledge, skills and values appropriate to a rapidly
changing world has been questioned by educationists,
researchers as well as employers. Such concerns are
stimulating a growth in the application of educational
technology and hence need to be addressed. Information
and Communication Technology (ICT) skills play a key
role in promoting economic development of a country.
Many of the productivity gains in the developed world
economies over the past two decades are attributable to
the impact of I.C.Ts, especially computers. Information
and Communication Technology have a direct role to play
in education and if appropriately used, can bring many
*Corresponding author E-mail: findoshi@yahoo.com
benefits to the education sector (Government of Kenya,
2005). For instance, it provides new opportunities for
teaching and learning including offering opportunity for
more student centered teaching, opportunity to reach
more learners, greater opportunity for teacher-to-teacher
and student-to-student communication and collaboration,
greater opportunities for multiple technologies delivered
by teachers, creating motivation in learning amongst
students and offering access to a wider range of courses.
The computer has been identified as the most efficient
‘stand-alone’ technology that is able to make teaching
and learning situations more meaningful and fruitful than
it has ever been before (Wabuyele, 2006; Osodo, 1999;
Amory, 1997).
Many schools face escalating demands on access to
finite computer resources, including computer suites,
and, lack of access at required times often discourage
220 Educ. Res.
Geography departments from using computers. There
are also relatively few opportunities for continuing
professional development in the use of computers in
Geography education. In many schools, weaknesses in
Geography education are associated with limitations in
the use of computer technology and strategic
management of cross-curricular ICTs (U.K., 2004). Good
teaching ought to be based on clear expectations of
geographical outcomes, with good preparation and
planning which provide a number of linked activities to
maintain pace and pupils’ interest. This was
demonstrated in the United Kingdom (U.K.) where high
school Geography students used ‘Kenya: the final
frontier’ CD-ROM to research aspects of the Maasai’s
way of life. The materials were used as a source of
images alongside text at an appropriate level. This had a
positive effect on learners’ comprehension of the
concepts taught (U.K., 2004).
In Kenya and other developing countries, there is
currently limited inclusion of real-world learning
experiences in the traditional classroom setting (Kinuthia,
2009; Duffy and Cunningham, 1996). Mostly, the content
presented in the classroom is disconnected from its realworld context. This contextual dichotomy tended to have
a negative impact on the learning process, adversely
affecting learner motivation in particular (Henning, 1998).
At the same time, real-world learning situated in realworld contexts has been shown to have positive impacts
on learning and learner motivation (Papastergiou, 2009;
Rieber, 2005; Duffy and Cunningham, 1996). Educational
simulations have been found to provide a solution to this
by providing some aspects of real-world learning in the
traditional classroom. Therefore, this study sought to
address the mismatch identified herein that even though
computer simulations have been proved to have a
positive impact on learners’ performance, not many
educators use them in teaching and learning innovatively.
Likewise, in the few cases where they are used, they are
mainly in the developed economies, emphasis being in
science oriented subjects. Also, none of the approaches
incorporate simulations with traditional teaching and
learning methodologies.
Over the last few years, there has been a rapid growth
in the range and sophistication of new I.C.T.s (such as
radio, video, television and so on) in teaching and
learning Geography within the developing countries. In
particular, computer technology has been used to
improve the quality of Geography education in schools
because of its robust nature in displaying graphics and
simulations (Castleford, 1998). Positive outcomes of
using technology in education have led many
governments to initiate programs for the integration of
technology into schools. In the US, around $8 billion was
spent by school districts in the 2003-2004 school year
alone to equip schools with necessary technology,
primarily in the form of computers. Similarly, in the US,
the computer-to-student ratio was 1:3.8 and the internet-
connected computer-to-student ratio was 1:4.1 in 2004.
The computer-to-student ratio in schools was around 1:7
in Canada and the UK in 1999 and the same ratio in
those countries is close to that of the US (Demirci, 2009).
The situation in Kenyan schools is yet to be established.
There are already a wide range of computer uses in
educational endeavours especially in the developed
economies such as the UK and the USA, and more uses
are being explored. The internet can be used by staff to
support efficient course administration and to assist
students to manage their learning. It can assist in
achieving many features of flexible delivery, including
student choice in the time, place and pace of study. The
internet, particularly, can be used to support a variety of
teaching and learning tasks, including distributing
information that could be conveyed in other ways; e.g., a
course syllabus is available electronically instead of on
paper, or photos appear on a website instead of being
shown around in class; giving access to information
storehouses; e.g., the internet can be used as an online
library giving access to information sources and
databases; providing alternative means of communication
(e.g., e-mail, electronic bulletin boards, chat rooms,
desktop videoconferencing) for both administrative and
instructional purposes. Other uses of the internet include
delivering formative and summative assessment tasks. In
the United Kingdom, for instance, the commercial product
QuestionMark has wide usage, being the chosen
package in about two-thirds of all the Higher Education
Institutions that use Computer Aided Assessment.
Developed primarily as a Windows-based version, their
relatively new product is Web based; supporting online
course and staff evaluation exercises; delivering
materials in multiple media that would be difficult to
transmit by other means, e.g., a text explanation can be
supplemented with pictures, sounds, video clips, links to
other sites, simulations. CD-ROMs are used for storing
and distributing large data sets of numerical, graphical or
cartographic information. It can also be used for giving
students active, hands-on, interactive experience in
analyzing information or solving problems. For instance,
a student can acquire data, processes it, make a map,
and develop a presentation. An example of such software
available on CD-ROM, is Exploring the Nardoo
(University of Wollongong, 1996), a virtual inland river
environment where research questions can be explored
and environmental management strategies simulated;
allowing students to work collaboratively (e.g., students at
different institutions working on a common problem). An
example is the 'Middle East Politics Simulation'
developed at Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia,
where students participate in role-playing exercises
conducted using the Internet or by videoconferencing.
Groups of Political Science students in Australia, New
Zealand and the United States play the role of prominent
leaders in the Middle East, USA or Europe, attempting to
resolve a specific political, social, economic or
Osodo et al. 221
environmental issue, after carrying out research to
identify the background, interests and agenda of their
particular character. In other cases, the simulation has
been modified to involve scenario building between
groups of Political and Environmental Science students,
for example in exploring conflicts over water allocation in
the Middle East (Alexander et al., 1998; Alexander and
Blight, 1996).
Even though the internet has been used for such tasks,
the challenge is to make more innovative uses of the
technology in order for the real potential of the technology
to be realized. These uses are more prevalent in the
developed countries as opposed to the developing ones.
The situation as regards computer use in Geography in
Kenya is yet to be established.
Potential benefits of computer technology in Geography
education can be identified as follows: resource savings
are possible in some circumstances: automating
repetitive, labour-intensive activities such as skills training
can save staff time; use of e-mail for staff-student contact
can save time and allow broadcasts of urgent messages
or new information; virtual field trips can offer improved
preparation before real field visits, or can provide a partial
substitute for them; access to an enhanced range of
information resources: compared with a conventional
library, an online virtual library offers timeliness (constant
updating of information), multiplicity (many users can
access a resource simultaneously) and variety or balance
(multiple web sites can be used to represent contrasting
views e.g. on an environmental issue). Use of ICT can
facilitate enhanced student learning, by supporting and
encouraging the adoption of contemporary effective
practices, e.g. a constructivist model of education (Duffy
and Cunningham, 1996), resource-based learning,
flexible learning (Wade et al., 1994), asynchronous virtual
or online tutorials can produce educational benefits quite
different from conventional tutorials for different groups.
There is evidence that they benefit less assertive or more
reflective students, facilitate deeper interaction and
generate active participation by student groups
marginalized by other methods (Harasim et al., 1995).
Also, electronic communications can support enhanced
collaborative learning (Johnson and Johnson, 1996;
Bednarz, 2004).
Johnson and Johnson (1996) and Bednarz (2004)
portend that increased use of ICT in teaching and
learning raises a wide variety of issues which are
technical, pedagogic, industrial, financial and strategic,
for example: effective use of ICT on any significant scale
requires new teaching methods, and awareness of
effective practices. It requires a further breakdown of the
traditional 'private' nature of teaching, and, there is a
need for active staff-development programs, greater
teaching support (and/or a wider range of non-teaching
skills from the staff), e.g. technical support, web
developers, and substantial investment may be required
in hardware and software. Substantial reworking of
capital and recurrent budgets is also likely to be
necessary. There may also be a need for student training
programs and help-desk facilities. There are access and
equity issues for students: e.g. marginalization by certain
groups as a result of the reliance on expensive
technology. Rewards and incentives to encourage staff to
invest substantial time and effort to initial developments,
copyright rules, intellectual property and moral rights,
equitably managing teaching loads, especially when
there is unequal involvement in ICT-based teaching, or
the greater capital investment and time often required are
other crucial issues (Johnson and Johnson, 1996;
Bednarz, 2004; Sang et al., 2010).
Even though the recent increase in primary school
enrollment has amplified the demand for and access to
secondary schools such that there are currently 4000
public secondary schools in Kenya, availability, extent
and potential use of computers in teaching and learning
is not well documented. This is an inference of minimal
and incoherent use of the technology in secondary
schools in Kenya. The Kenya Ministry of Education,
Science and Technology (MOEST) is concerned with the
quality of secondary education which is characterized by
poor performance in core subjects such as Mathematics
and Science. There are several benefits for integrating
computers into secondary schools as students in this age
need to focus on subject-specific content, greater critical
thinking skills as well as scientific inquiry. Students may
benefit greatly with the analytical, creative, and
collaborative power of computers to map out and analyze
assumptions, present ideas, and collaborate in projects
with peers from around the country and around the world
(MOEST, 2005).
As has been observed, in Kenya and subsequently
Kisumu, there has been erratic use of computers for
educational purposes. The cultural context of ICT
adoption, language barriers, and attitudes toward ICT
affect the rate at which it is adopted. Perceived difficulty
in the integration of ICT in education is based on the
belief that technology use is challenging, its
implementation requires extra time, technology skills are
difficult to learn, and the cost of attaining and maintain
resources is prohibitive. Few schools own or have access
to computers for teaching and learning. According to
Odera (2002), the introduction of Computer Studies as an
examinable subject in Kenya could be traced to private
commercial colleges that introduced the course for
income generation in the early 1990s. Even though there
was plummeting popularity of computer courses among
students, parents and teachers, there was lack of
reciprocal action on the side of the government to
increase enrollment and related infrastructure. ICT
operators in the Kenyan education field included
organizations such as Computer for schools Kenya
(CfSK), Kenya ICT Trust Fund, Kenya Computer Initiative
222 Educ. Res.
Table 1. Performance in Geography Kenya
Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) in Kisumu
District
Year
2009
2008
Enrollment
1272
1184
Mean score
5.019
5.530
Source: Osodo et al. (2010)
(KCI), Kenya Education Network (KENET) and others.
Such agencies and non-governmental organizations
made attempts to provide ICT hardware and software as
well as technical services to schools in Kenya in liaison
with the government (Krige and Okono, 2007). Be that as
it may, the efforts are disjointed and have had little impact
in education. This necessitated the study to establish
innovative computer uses that would help raise
educational standards in the country.
The study focused on Kisumu district since it was
realized that the performance of Geography in the
national examinations was relapsing as indicated in Table
1.
From Table 1, it is observable that even though
enrollment increased from 1184 in the year 2008 to 1272
in the year 2009, performance in Geography in the
national examinations declined.
Specific objectives of the study were:
1. To establish availability of computer based resources
in Geography education in secondary schools.
2. To assess extent of utilization of computer based
resources in Geography education in secondary schools.
3. Assess potential utilization of computer based
resources in Geography education in secondary schools.
teaching and learning Geography in schools, a Likert type scale on
two to five measurement points with nine items was administered to
the teachers and students. The respondents were asked to provide
information regarding the name of their schools, classes they
taught, contact details (optional), whether or not they had
computers for teaching Geography and in case computers were
used at all or effectively in order to enhance comprehension of
concepts. They were also required to indicate potential areas of use
of computers in teaching and learning Geography.
Validity and reliability of the instruments
To ascertain validity of the instruments, items were discussed with
three authorities in the content area and their expert opinions were
used to determine and ascertain validity of the instruments.
Triangulation was also done as a way of reducing uncertainty of
interpretation of the results, as a form of cross-checking as
recommended by Nkpa (1997). In order to ascertain accuracy and
consistency of the instruments with regard to reliability, the testretest reliability procedure was performed as suggested by Osodo
et al. (2010). Suter (1998) and Nkpa (1997) also contended that by
administering the same instrument again to the same subjects after
a time period has elapsed and statistically comparing the results,
evidence of reliability would be observed. Subgroups were
randomly selected from the normative groups to examine the testretest reliability of the revised questionnaires. The teachers and the
learners were then asked to complete check-lists twice over a four
week period. The Pearson Product Moment correlation co-efficient
on total check-list scores was then determined. The exact
agreement method for specific check-list items (agreements on both
occurrence and non-occurrence cases divided by the total number
of items) was then used to determine the test-retest reliability. The
formula used for calculating the reliability coefficient was:
r = ∑(X – X) (Y – Y)
√[∑(X – X)2 ∑( Y – Y)2]
where r is the linear correlation coefficient which measures the
strength and the direction of a linear relationship between two
variables, X and Y being the two subgroups randomly selected for
the test-retest reliability of the instruments.
RESEARCH METHODS
Venue and Sample
Data collection
The research was conducted in Kisumu district of Nyanza province,
western Kenya. In this study, general population was all secondary
school Geography teachers (N=240) and students (N=3,500) in
Kisumu district. The study sample was form three secondary school
students taking Geography as an examinable subject (n=1,165) as
well as form three secondary school Geography teachers (n=80),
which constituted 30% of the population selected by simple random
sampling technique. The table of random digits was read starting at
a random point and each digit that appeared in the table read and
recorded to generate the random list of students. From the starting
point, the table was read systematically in the downward direction
(vertically) and the corresponding members of the population for all
the selected numbers used as the random sample. Fraenkel and
Wallen (2000) and Suter (1998) recommended this sampling
strategy since each member of the target population has an equal
and independent chance of being included in the sample.
The researcher made advance visits to schools and made
appointments with the respondents in their schools then
administered the questionnaire within one week after the visit, at
the convenience of the respondents. All the 80 teachers and 1165
students responded to the teacher and student questionnaire
respectively.
Instruments
Data collection instrument was student and teacher questionnaire.
To investigate the availability and extent of use of computers for
Data analysis procedure
Frequency counts were computed for the data collected by use of
the questionnaire on a two to five point Likert type scale. Mean
scores of the respondents on each item of the scale were then
calculated. For the five point items, the statements on the Likert
scale were scored as follows: ‘Strongly Agree’=5 points, ‘Agree’=4
points, ‘Undecided’=3 points, ‘Disagree’=2 points, ‘Strongly
Disagree’=1 point. A mean score of above 3 was interpreted to
denote a positive perception, a mean score of 3 denoted a neutral
perception and a mean score of below 3 denoted a negative
perception. Responses to items from the two point scale were
coded and scored as frequencies and mean.
Osodo et al. 223
Figure 1. Percentage of schools in Kisumu district that have computers
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Availability of computer based resources
Geography education in secondary schools
in
The first part of this research involved an investigation of
the percentage of secondary schools within Kisumu
district that had computers. Out of a total number of 80
schools, a paltry 6 (8%) had computers whereas 74
schools (92%) did not have computers (Figure 1) that
could be used for Geography teaching and learning. A
close scrutiny disclosed that even though computers
existed in such schools, there were no clear cut policies
on their integration in teaching and learning specific
subjects such as Geography. Instead, there was sporadic
use of computers for word processing, spreadsheets and
other non-academic management purposes.
Figure 1 shows that a super majority of schools in
Kisumu district did not have computers for use in
teaching and learning. From this information, it is
apparent that the use of computers in education is either
minimal or non existent as corroborated by Demirci,
(2009), Kinuthia (2009) and Odera (2002).
Kinuthia (2009) and Farrell (2007) contend that very
few secondary schools have sufficient ICT tools for
teachers and students. Even in schools that have
computers, the student-computer ratio is 150:1. Most of
the schools with ICT infrastructure have acquired it
through initiatives supported by parents, the government,
non-governmental organizations (NGOs), or other
development agencies and the private sector, including
the NEPAD electronic school programme. The basic
problem is that Kenya lacks adequate connectivity and
network infrastructure. Although a small number of
schools have direct access to high-speed connectivity
through an Internet service provider, generally there is
limited
penetration
of
the
national
physical
telecommunication infrastructure into rural and lowincome areas. Consequently, there is limited access to
dedicated phone lines and high-speed connectivity for
electronic mail and the Internet. Even where access to
high-speed connectivity is possible, high costs inhibit
access. About 10% of secondary schools with computers
are able to share teaching resources via a LAN. As a
solution to these access problems, the ministry hopes to
leverage the e-government initiative of networking public
institutions countrywide to facilitate connectivity for the
educational sector (Farrell, 2007).
Utilization of computer based resources
Geography education in secondary schools
in
It was apparent from the results (Figure 1) that many
schools in Kisumu district did not have computers that
could be available for use in teaching and learning
Geography. There was paucity of computers in several
schools, and, in the few schools where there were
computers, they were not used for Geography education,
even though they could have been available for such use.
Other schools had computers but were a reserve of the
school administration, dedicated for record keeping and
word processing. As such, it was assumed that such
schools did not have computers since they could not be
accessed for use in Geography education.
Since many schools did not have computers for
teaching and learning Geography, introduction of general
purpose and curriculum focused software would be
difficult unless such schools got access to computers for
teaching and learning. As such, performance in certain
abstract topics was likely to decline since students and
teachers in the schools would not be able to integrate
224 Educ. Res.
computers in to the curriculum. The introduction of
computer educational packages were likely to have a
positive effect in the performance of learners thereby
raising educational standards.
There are a number of challenges that may face
access and use of ICT in Kenya such as high levels of
poverty that hinder access to ICT facilities, limited rural
electrification and frequent power disruptions. Where
there is electricity, there is high cost of internet provision,
high costs associated with ICT equipment, infrastructure
and support. As a result of such challenges, the use of
computer technology in education in Kenya may not be
widespread. The Kenya Government’s Ministry of
education’s policy on ICT is to integrate ICT education
and training into educational systems in order to prepare
the learners and staff for the country’s future economy
and thereby enhance the nation’s ICT skills (Republic of
Kenya, 2005).
A survey of 56 schools in seven out of eight provinces
in Kenya by Oloo (2009) corroborated these findings that
use of computers for teaching and learning in Kenya was
dismal with a 7.14% performance. Respondents in
schools surveyed by Oloo felt that they did not have
adequate funding to purchase ICT equipment and would
consider buying them for administrative purposes such as
letter typing and examination processing. The priority of
most schools surveyed was to acquire computers for
administration purposes before anything else (Oloo,
2009).
The empirical data collected in Oloo’s survey showed
that the range of number of computers owned by schools
varied widely from one school to another. In his survey
17.9% of schools (10) had less than 5 computers. 46.4%
of schools had 20 or less schools while 62.5% had l30 or
fewer computers. Given an average secondary school
population of 500 students, this gives a very low student
to computer ratio. During this survey it was clear that
majority of teachers where ill equipped to effectively
integrate ICT in classroom. The main challenge for
teachers interviewed was lack of adequate number of
computers, educational applications, training, policy and
strategy on how integration should be done (Oloo, 2009).
A baseline survey report of ICTs in secondary schools in
selected parts of Kenya established that administrative
use and examination processing was the most frequent
followed by teaching of basic computer skills. This was
because most schools felt financially constrained and the
little money they had would rather be spent on
administrative support services. It was also found that a
few schools had purchased schools management
software which used with varying success. Most felt
unsupported with lack of training on sue of management
software. The most common modules bought by schools
were examination, timetabling and accounting modules
(Oloo, 2009). Even though Oloo’s survey indicated some
increase in computer use in schools for general
purposes, it is observable that integration of computers in
teaching and learning specific subjects like Geography is
non existent.
Potential utilization of computer based resources in
Geography education in secondary schools
Even though computers have been established to aid
teaching and learning, not many institutions use them
innovatively. While computers may be common in
Geography instruction in higher education, their use at
the pre-collegiate level is not very common, but is
increasing. The use of computers in education is often
termed Computer Assisted Learning (CAL). CAL
indicates use of computers as an aid in learning rather
than only as a tool for research. Taylor (1991), Fitzpatrick
(1990) and Scheffler (1999) suggested a typology for
CAL in Geography including computers as sources of
data and information; computers as analytical tools;
computers as laboratories for investigating the world;
computers as instructors. Other potential uses include
word processing, database, spreadsheet, tutorials,
statistics, data storage and display, communications,
simulations, cartography, remote sensing, Geographic
Information Systems and the internet.
Simulations is touted to be crucial in aiding
comprehension of abstract concepts thereby enhancing
learners’ performance in Geography. Computer
simulations are software applications that include an
executable model of a system. The system may either be
an actual physical system, or, a theoretical one.
Simulations involve the use of a model to conduct
experiments which convey an understanding of the
behaviour of the system modeled. The act of simulating
something generally entails representing certain key
characteristics or behaviour of selected physical or
abstract system. The computer operator loads as many
as possible the potential parameters of a situation in the
computer. The computer is then programmed to
extrapolate results of any change in the original situation.
They can reduce cost, reduce risk and improve
understanding of the system under study.
CONCLUSIONS AND IMLPICATIONS
The study concluded that many schools in Kisumu
District did not have computers dedicated for teaching
and learning Geography. The few schools that had
computers did not use them for Geography education.
Instead, there were sporadic and superficial use of
computer technology in basic applications for
manipulation of figures and text using Microsoft Excel
and Microsoft Word. The extent of computer use in
Geography education was therefore minimal, if any,
uncoordinated and lacking in innovation. As such,
students were faced with perennial problems in
Osodo et al. 225
comprehending certain abstract topics attributable to lack
of computer technology in educational endeavours.
Since it was established that hardly any schools owned
and used computer technology for geography education,
the study recommends that the government should have
a clear policy on use of computers in schools so that
more schools can incorporate computers in teaching and
learning, guided by clear, time tested policies. Also,
follow up mechanisms should be put in place by the
government to ensure the policies are implemented as
stipulated.
The government should also zero rate computers and
related accessories so that as many schools as possible
are able to purchase them. Where poverty levels are
high, the government should donate computers to the
schools and initiate sustainable computer projects.
The study also recommends that teachers should be
trained on the use of computers in teaching and learning
so that they become competent in using them in
teaching. Both pre and in-service teachers should be
trained in computer literacy.
The government should also provide incentives to
students and teachers who make earnest attempts to use
computer technology in teaching and learning so that
they feel extrinsically and intrinsically motivated.
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